Devotees of St. Brigid plan to mark their Sunday with the planned return of a relic associated with the so-called matron of Ireland. The celebrations come about a millennium after her remains were brought from the city of Kildare, where she founded a prestigious abbey and inspired a host of colorful, wonderful legends.
The celebration in her hometown, southwest of Dublin, is part of Brigid 1500 – a series of commemorations around the world centered around the saint's feast day on February 1, marking the 1,500th anniversary. Mark the anniversary of her death around the year 524.
In a way, Brigid is on the right track. The commemorations come a year after Ireland began honoring her with an annual holiday – the first Irish woman to be honored with one.
While St. Patrick has long been the saint most identified with Ireland, Brigid has gained a growing following in the 21st century. Followers draw inspiration from Brigid the saint and Brigid, the ancient pagan goddess whose name and attributes she shares, as symbols of female spirituality and empowerment. This comes against a backdrop of growing dissatisfaction with the patriarchal and historically dominant Catholic Church.
WHO WAS BRIGID?
First question: Which Brigid?
Brigid was the name of a prominent goddess worshiped by ancient pagan Celts – the namesake of the saint who lived in the fifth and sixth centuries.
Brigid, the goddess, was associated with everything from poetry, healing, and metalworking to nature, fertility, and fire. She was honored on the holy Midwinter Day of Imbolc, which is still celebrated on February 1, which also became Saint Brigid's Day.
Saint Brigid's father is said to have been a ruler and her mother was enslaved. Although Brigid's life story has been embellished by legend, it is believed that she was the abbess of a monastic settlement of men and women that became a center of arts and learning and gave the town its name, Irish for “Church of the Oak.” ” Legend has it that when the local king gave her only enough land for her monastery to fit under her cloak, he miraculously dispersed it across the surrounding countryside.
Saint Brigid traveled, preached and healed. It is often depicted with images of fire and light and is associated with fertility, caring for living beings and peacemaking.
According to another legend, Brigid gave her father's jeweled sword to a needy man so that he could trade him for food.
WHICH RELIC WILL BE RETURNED TO KILDARE?
It is believed that Brigid was buried in her monastery church in Kildare. Around the ninth century, her remains were moved to the northern town of Downpatrick in the hope of escaping depredations by Vikings and others. This sanctuary was later destroyed by English troops during the Protestant Reformation.
Various churches on the European continent claim to possess relics of Saint Brigid. These include a bone fragment of Brigid's skull, which, according to tradition, was brought to a church in Portugal by three Irish knights. A fragment of this relic was returned to the Brigid Sisters in other parts of Ireland in the 1930s and is kept in a small metal reliquary shaped like an oak tree, an image associated with Brigid. This is the relic that will be returned to Kildare.
The relic's new resting place will be the Catholic parish church named after St. Brigid, where it will be on permanent display.
What is a relic and why do Catholics venerate them?
Catholic canon law states that the church “promotes the true and authentic veneration” of saints based on their pious examples. This may include the veneration of relics – which may include fragments of saints' bodies as well as their clothing and other items associated with them.
“Worship must be clearly distinguished from adoration and adoration, which is due to God alone,” says the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
WHAT IS ST. BRIGID'S DAY?
St. Brigid's Day and Imbolc, a pagan holiday associated with the goddess Brigid and heralding the coming of spring, both fall on February 1, although Ireland observes the holiday on the following Monday.
WHY IS BRIGID GAINING A FOLLOWING IN THE 21ST CENTURY?
Brigid's moment comes as many Irish people are disillusioned with traditional Roman Catholicism and its patriarchal leadership amid a secularizing culture. Even many faithful Catholics are dismayed by scandals, including the cover-up of sexual abuse.
Whether believers worship Brigid primarily as a saint, goddess, or a combination of both, they see Brigid as a symbol of female spirituality, environmentalism, and artistic creation.
Brigid's Day is “an invitation to end Christianity's senseless, millennia-old war against paganism” and to see “the wisdom and beauty of both lineages,” wrote Melanie Lynch, founder of Herstory, which championed the new national holiday.
HOW IS ST. Is Brigitte's Day celebrated?
The most dramatic event is the planned return of the relic to Brigid's hometown with a short procession to St. Brigid's Parish Church of Solas Bhride – a Christian spirituality center run by Brigid Sisters in Kildare with a mission to welcome “people of all faiths and religions”. without faith.” The procession is led by three girls riding ponies and dressed as medieval Irish knights who, according to tradition, accompanied the relic to Portugal centuries before.
“What amazes me is that 1,500 years later she is still fondly remembered in Kildare and Ireland,” said David Mongey, chairman of Into Kildare, the local tourism association. “Their words, their wisdom and their actions mean more now than ever when considering how we treat our land, our environment, our animals, how we treat each other and ourselves. ”
Several events are organized by Solas Bhride, Irish, for “Light of Brigid”, including a “Break for Peace” at lunchtime. Thousands of students plan to mark the break on the nearby Curragh Plains by creating a human form of a large St Brigid's Cross, made up of a square with four symmetrical arms.
Others around the world are joining the pause – a minute's silence at midday local time – said Brigid Sister Rita Minehan, one of the founders of Solas Bhride.
“We are sending the message that we actively oppose war in our world and the proliferation of weapons,” she said. “It’s pretty scary what’s happening in our world. There is an urgent need for peace, and Brigid was known as a peacemaker.”
Music, ecumenical services and other activities take place elsewhere in Kildare.
The group Herstory, which uses arts and education to promote female role models, is planning events across Ireland over the holiday and the days following. These include dramatic light shows in which artistic depictions of Brigid are projected onto historical landmarks.
In other parts of the world, groups working on Irish heritage plan to celebrate the day with concerts and cultural events. Churches plan masses to honor the saint, while Wiccan and other pagan groups plan meditations and other ceremonies to honor the goddess and mark Imbolc.
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